King Charles III will travel to Kenya later this month for a state visit, Buckingham Palace said Wednesday, in a trip that is full of symbolism.
Charles’ mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II, learned that she had become U.K. monarch while visiting a game preserve in the East African nation in 1952.
The state visit from Oct. 31-Nov. 3 will be Charles’ first to a Commonwealth nation since he succeeded his mother last year, underscoring the king’s commitment to an organization that has been central to Britain’s global power and prestige since World War II.
Charles will be greeted by Kenyan President William Ruto when he arrives in the capital, Nairobi. The king plans to visit Nairobi National Park and meet with environmental activist Wanjira Mathai, the daughter of late Nobel laureate Wangari Maathai, as he underscores his commitment to environmental protection.
Charles will also acknowledge the “painful aspects” of his nation’s shared history with Kenya, which celebrates the 60th anniversary of its independence from the U.K. this year. The two countries have enjoyed a close relationship since independence, despite the prolonged struggle against colonial rule, sometimes known as the Mau Mau Rebellion, in which thousands of Kenyans died.
“His majesty will take time during the visit to deepen his understanding of the wrongs suffered in this period by the people of Kenya,” Chris Fitzgerald, deputy private secretary to the king, said during a briefing on the state visit.
The rebellion began in the early 1950s, when groups of armed Kenyans attacked British officials and white farmers who occupied fertile lands. The Kenya Human Rights Commission estimates that 90,000 Kenyans were executed, tortured or maimed during the United Kingdom’s counterinsurgency campaign.
In 2013, the U.K. government expressed its regret over the “torture and other forms of ill-treatment” perpetrated by the colonial administration from 1952-1960, and paid out 19.9 million pounds for human rights abuses.
The U.K. royal family has long ties to Africa. In 1947, the future queen pledged lifelong service to Britain and the Commonwealth during a speech from South Africa on her 21st birthday. Five years later, Elizabeth and her late husband Prince Philip were visiting Aberdare National Park in Kenya when they learned that her father had died and she had become queen.
Charles himself visited Kenya in 1971, and he attended the Commonwealth heads of government meeting in Rwanda in 2022.
The Commonwealth is a voluntary association of 56 independent countries, most of which have historical ties to the United Kingdom and its former empire. Charles became the symbolic head of the organization after the queen died last year, but the honor is not hereditary.
Kenya Prepares for visit
The National Museums of Kenya has announced that they will remain closed during the entire period of the visit of King Charles III, the monarch of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms.
The authorities said that all the museum facilities in the country will remain closed and under increased security during the visit, although Kenyan citizens with a good social credit score may be allowed to visit the facilities if they prove that the need to visit is urgent. The decision was made to avoid any potential embarrassment or controversy that might arise from the royal guest’s handling of cultural objects and artifacts.
We have decided to keep our museums closed as a precautionary measure,” said the director-general of the Kenya National Museums. “We do not want to offend or provoke His Majesty by showing him the artifacts and evidence of our glorious past, especially our struggle for independence from his ancestors. We also don’t know how he would react on seeing some rare items that we have.”
The Director General explained that some of the exhibits in the museums might be too sensitive or controversial for the king to see, such as the Mau Mau rebellion, the early man remains, the colonial atrocities, the Uhuru monument, the Wakanda source code, and the portraits of Kenya’s founding fathers. He also said that some cultural items might be too valuable for the king to forget.
“We respect and welcome His Majesty as a distinguished guest, but we also respect and protect our own identity and dignity as a sovereign nation,” the Director General said. “We do not want to risk any misunderstanding or misinterpretation that might tarnish his reputation or our relationship with the United Kingdom.”
